Electric Services

Electric bills are issued every two months. Payment is either by automatic bank transfer or at banks specified. Overdue bills are paid at your district Electric Department Central Office. There is a significant charge for overdue bills.



Telephone

Getting a Turkish mobile phone sim card with a regular monthly bill requires co-signing from a Turkish citizen. Turkcel (0532) and Telsim (0542) are of this type. Pay-as-you-go sim cards are available whereby you purchase set amounts of talking time. These are easier to acquire from any phone shop and just require payment and a valid passport.

Traditional phone booths are conveniently located around the city. Phone cards can be purchased from the local vendors or from the PTT (Posta-Telefon-Telegraf) offices.

Home phone service is much more reliable than it used to be and much easier to have installed. You must present a written request to your district's Telephone Department Central Office (Genel Müdürlügü) - not the local PTT office. If your home has a phone line it will be turned on within a few days. If there are no lines you will be given an appointment for installation. It is possible to pay an extra fee for faster service. Bills can be paid through automatic bank transfer or at banks specified. Bills past the due date must be paid at the General Office.

Water

Water bills are issued every three months. They can be paid through automatic bank transfer, at banks specified, or at your district's Water Department General Office.

Cable TV

Cable TV service can be obtained from your district's Telephone Department General Office with a written request for service. Bills are issued monthly and can be paid by automatic bank transfer or at banks specified on the bill. Overdue bills are paid at the telephone office.

At present, English language channels include: CNN, BBC World, BBC, Teleon, Prime, MSNBC, and Eurosport. CINE-5 is a for-pay channel with sporting events, movies, and sitcoms (some English, mostly Turkish). Channel E often has English-language sit-coms and movies in English with written Turkish subtitles.

Natural Gas

Most homes in Turkey have been equipped with natural gas for heating. Sometimes, the cost of gas is included in your monthly general building charges. If your gas is handled separately from the general apartment, your monthly bills are paid through automatic bank transfer or at banks specified on the bill.

Some ovens and bathroom water heating units used LPG gas tubes. These are sold on trucks that visit the neighborhoods, often playing music to advertise their presence.They can also be contacted by phone.

Postal Services

Letters, magazines, and small parcels are delivered to your door by a postman. It is in your best interest to develop a good relationship with your neighborhood postman to encourage him to bring packages to your door and save you a trip to the Paket Posta in town. Also, instruct relatives and friends to send small padded envelope packages whenever possible. It also helps to have packages sent to your work address if possible.

Letters can be mailed from any PTT office. For an extra fee, the letters can be sent express and arrive within 2-3 days. Express mail services like DHL and UPS are also available.


Package Pickup

A yellow slip may arrive with your regular mail. This slip must be taken, along with your passport, to the Small Packet Postage Center near Topkapý. It is possible to send another person in your place with written authorization and a copy of your passport. There is a small charge for customs, and a late charge for packages not picked up within the time specified.

Health

Turkey's health services are composed of an under-funded public system and a financially-sound private sector.  As Turkey does not have any health care agreements with other countries, it is advisable to purchase private insurance.  Public hospitals are generally crowded and understaffed, but their private counterparts are modern and cater to patients' needs.  Going to a private hospital, especially if you have health insurance, is the easiest solution to any health problems.  For dental needs, many private hospitals provide care. To arrange comprehensive health insurance Kaya Estate recommend our partner Aviva Sigorta (Commercial Union) ; www.avivasigorta.com.tr ; or e-mail evrenselsigorta@hotmail.com  
 
For less serious health problems, pharmacies (eczane) can supply treatments and medications without prescriptions.  Easily found in most neighborhoods, pharmacies tend to be clustered around hospitals.  Hours are typically 9am-7pm Monday-Saturday. Generally, each neighborhood has a duty pharmacy (nöbetci) open all night and on Sundays; closed pharmacies will post signs as to the location of this pharmacy. 

Opening hours
General business hours are by and large very variable. 
Following are guidelines to opening hours:

Banks: 9 am - 5 pm Mon-Fri (Some banks close at noon time)
Bars: 11am or noon-2am daily
Businesses: 9am-6pm Mon-Fri
Municipal Offices: 8am-12.30pm, 1.30-5.30pm Mon-Fri
Museums: 8.30am-5.30pm
Petrol Stations: 24 hrs daily
Shops: 10am-8pm Mon-Sat
Grocery Stores and Supermarkets: 9am-10pm daily